


Afterglow

by ptrmj



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Eventual Happy Ending, F/M, Fluff, Heartbreak, Inspired by Music, MJ is insecure, Peter loves her so much
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-17
Updated: 2019-09-17
Packaged: 2020-10-04 19:02:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,090
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20476004
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ptrmj/pseuds/ptrmj
Summary: After returning from their school trip, Peter and MJ are a couple(?). MJ really likes Peter but she doesn’t know how to express it, so she thinks... they shouldn’t be together.





	Afterglow

What had happened on the Midtown school trip was nothing MJ expected, elemental creatures destroying Europe was definitely not on her radar and neither was Peter Parker confessing his feelings. There on London Bridge, she had all the confidence in the world to kiss Spider-Man but now, back in Queens, it was different.

MJ didn’t know how it was going to work. She didn’t know how to express her thoughts or feelings to Peter. MJ never in her life felt this close to a person. Before they became a _“thing”_, it was simple. She would watch and admire him from a distance, never making it obvious that she had feelings for the masked hero.

Peter on the other hand, didn’t have an issue with expressing how he felt. He would walk to class with her (even when his class was on the other side of school), made sure there was a seat for her in the cafeteria and he always made sure to text her “Goodnight MJ, I love you.” at 11pm every night, even when out on patrol. (MJ hadn’t gotten to the L word yet)

This _“thing”_ between them was something they both wanted, but to the rest of Midtown High, Peter was the only one who seemed interested. It’s not that MJ didn’t love or care for Peter, it’s just that she doesn’t have a great history with getting close to people. Everyone appeared to have an opinion about their relationship.

**_“Peter and Michelle don’t make a cute couple.”_ **

** _“MJ doesn’t even like Peter.”_ **

** _“Peter just feels bad for her and that’s why they’re dating.”_ **

MJ would never admit it, but their comments did hurt. Maybe they _weren’t_ right for each other. Maybe she _didn’t_ really like Peter, what if Europe was just a whirlwind romance that was a one off? What if Peter _is_ just dating her because he _does_ feel bad? This is the conclusion MJ came up with:

** _ they should break up._ **

She didn’t want it to end up this way, she wanted things to work out but the pressure of expressing her feelings and trying to be the perfect girl for Peter was just too hard. MJ wanted Peter to have someone better, it’s what he deserved after everything he went through.

————————————————————————

Peter was standing at her locker as he does every morning, his books in an awkward stack, waiting to walk MJ to class. He has dark circles under his eyes, he was clearly out late on patrol the night before. 

“Hey MJ!”, Peter’s eyes light up as she approaches.

“Hi…”, seeing Peter makes her heart skip a little but she suppresses it.

“Ready to go to class?”, he asks with a cheesy smile.

“Uh, um… not really. I have to… go to the restroom before class.”, her excuse wasn’t believable but before Peter could say anything, she headed to the toilets.

Peter screams down the hallway, “MJ! Did you want me to wait for you?” but she was already around the corner.

MJ flipped the lid of the toilet down and sat with her books in her lap. Tears dropped onto her calculus textbook, staining the front page. She rubbed her eyes, she could feel the redness already. She pulled her phone out of her pocket and went to the camera. She looked at herself through her phone screen, eyes puffy and irritated. She let out a long sigh, she needed to get this over and done with.

————————————————————————

There he was, sitting at their usual table at the cafeteria. Ned hadn’t arrived yet, which meant it was the right time for MJ to talk to Peter. She walks over with her lunch tray, shivering nervously and sits across from him.

“Hey! What happened this morning?”, his puppy dog eyes always get her.

“Peter, we… we can’t do this anymore.”, she says shakily. MJ stares into her lap, trying her best to hide the tears forming.

“What… Em, what do you mean? Lunch? We don’t always have to sit together at lunch. You can sit with Betty or Cindy; I don’t control you. I’m happy to just sit with Ned. Yeah so, no more lun-“

“No Peter, I mean us… I just don’t see this working.”

“MJ…”, he reaches across the table for her hand, but she withdraws it into the pocket of her jeans.

MJ gets up from the table without her lunch and as she turns, she allows the tears to stream down her face.

It was the right thing to do. Peter and MJ just weren’t meant to be. This is how it is supposed to be. He needed better, better than Michelle Jones. Peter Parker needed love and comfort, she just couldn’t give that to him.

Peter’s head was in his hands, dragging his fingers through his curls. How did this happen? Had he done something wrong? Was he too overpowering? Did he not love her properly?

Ned walks over, he heard every word. He could see the state that his friend was in, but what was he supposed to do?

“Peter, did… did you want to talk about it?”

“No Ned, I still love her. This can’t just be over. I need to talk to her.”

“Listen, just try to stay friends. I know you love her but she probably just wants space.”

“Yeah… maybe…”

————————————————————————

It’s been a week since MJ broke up with Peter. She thought she would feel different but the truth is, she didn’t. MJ would still see Peter around school but he didn’t walk her to class anymore or save her a seat at the cafeteria.

Peter and MJ weren’t avoiding each other, they couldn’t. They were in three of the same classes and it was hard for both of them. MJ would catch quick glances at Peter when he was enchanted by what Mr Harrington was saying or when he was too busy working out a physics problem.

She could tell that he had lost the slight glimmer in his eyes and the little skip in his step. It was excruciating to see him in this state, she just wanted to squeeze his hand and not let go. But she was the one that ended it, how could she go back? How could she ever fix it? Fix them?

People were talking. Just as they did before. MJ can hear the little whispers as she walks down the hallway. The last thing she ever wanted was to be the centre of attention. She missed being invisible, unknown, safe.

Another week goes by, Peter is still texting her “Goodnight MJ” just without the “I love you”. She has a goofy smile every time she sees the text at 11pm on the dot. MJ won’t admit it but she looks forward to it every night. She doesn’t respond, but Peter knows she has seen it. MJ doesn’t realise that her read receipts are on and Peter smiles to himself.

At school, they bump into each other in the cafeteria. MJ’s lunch tray goes falling to the ground, both of them stand there bewildered. Peter looks down at the utter mess and then back up again, meeting MJ’s mystical eyes. 

“Oh, MJ, I’m so sorry. I wasn’t really looking where I was going and I’ve been a bit distracted recently wit-“

”It’s okay... I’m not that hungry anyway.”

MJ turns to leave the cafeteria but Peter reaches for her hand. Their fingers brush for an instant which causes MJ to turn back to Peter. 

“Di... did you want to eat lunch with me? Aunt May packed me an extra sandwich and some fruit. We could go sit outside if you’d like... have a mini picnic?”

His eyes are full of hope, waiting for MJ's response that could ultimately make or break his heart. Her mind was racing whether or not to accept his offer. She fidgets with her fingers, head down with strands of curly hair falling over her face. Peter stands there tapping his foot anxiously.

"Okay, sure."

A sigh of relief escapes Peter's lips. 

————————————————————————

The sun was out, streaming onto MJ's face as they sat beneath a tree near the bleachers. Peter admired how the sun made her skin glow so effortlessly. God she was beautiful. MJ catches him staring and as usual, Peter scrambles for something else to do. He pulls out two sandwiches from his backpack and hands one to MJ.

"Thanks Peter.", she says with a slight grin.

His heart flutters a little, this was the first time since they broke up that he heard MJ say his name. Oh, how he missed her. 

The two sat in silence, nibbling at their sandwiches. It wasn't an awkward silence, they felt so comfortable around each other and didn't need words to fill the air. Peter grabs a container of strawberries from his bag and hands one to MJ. She bites into the fresh, juicy fruit teeth first.

"Eh uh, pleh, this is so sour!" she exclaims as her face scrunches up in the most adorable way possible.

Peter is in a fit of giggles, seeing MJ's reaction to a sour strawberry is priceless.

"Hey! It's not that funny, dork!"

"Okay, okay, it's just a little funny. You should have seen your face, your mouth and eyes all crinkled..." he imitates her reaction and bursts into laughter.

MJ gives Peter a little shove as she begins to laugh too. Their eyes meet for a split second and there is the spark that was there from the beginning. She quickly turns away and reaches for her phone. She stares blankly at the screen, pretending to look at the time, trying to find an excuse to leave.

"Oh look, fifth period is about to start. I have a test... I uh gotta go. Thanks for the sandwich and strawberries." Her voice speeding through the sentence as quickly as possible.

"It's no problem."

She picks up her bag and heads to her locker. Peter knows that she doesn't want to get hurt and this is her defence mechanism, hiding from her feelings so they aren't exposed to any danger. He didn't know what to do, he loves her but is it best to just let Michelle Jones go?

————————————————————————

The bell rings and students flood out of all classrooms. MJ keeps to herself as people push and shove their way through the hallway to get to their lockers. She watches how each person seems to be in a state of stress, wanting to rapidly leave the prison that is Midtown High. She shuffles her feet, trying to avoid anyone that was in her path, towards her locker to retrieve her bag. Her mind is still thinking back to lunch, spending time with Peter again felt so... _**right.**_

MJ begins her trek home, she lives a couple of blocks away from school. She loves walking alone, it allows her to clear her mind after a stressful day and take in Queens, admiring its beauty. Today, all she could think about was Peter. How his smile made her heart do a little flip. How kind his eyes are. How he really cares for her. How she was so **_wrong _**to break things off. But could she ever get him back? Today gave her hope.

MJ steps into her small two-bedroom apartment. Her mom is working a night shift so she is home alone, thank god because she would have so many questions. She lets her hair out of the tangled bun it was in for the entire day. MJ plops down onto her bed with a sigh of exhaustion. She contemplates what she is about to do, she can feel the little drops of sweat forming on her forehead. Is this what it feels like? When you... love someone? She unlocks her phone, taps messages and finds Peter's name. MJ takes a deep breath in and begins to type.

_Hey_

_Hi, what's up?_

_I need to tell you something, it's important._

_Of course, go ahead._

_I'm the one who burned us down, but it's not what I meant. _

_Sorry that I hurt you. _

_I don't wanna do this to you... I don't wanna lose this with you._

_Em, it's alright. _

_I don't want to lose you either._

_I blew things out of proportion._

_I listened to what everyone was saying but it was all me, in my head. _

_Are you still mine?_

_Tell me... will we be just fine?_

_Yes, we are fine._

_You are all I want MJ. _

_I really love you._

_I really **love** you too._

**Author's Note:**

> I was desperate for petermj content so I decided to write this. I’m not the best writer but I just needed to put this out, only my second post on here. I kinda hate how choppy it is but oh well.
> 
> This was inspired by Taylor Swift’s new song “Afterglow” thus the title. Stream and buy the Lover album please and thank you!


End file.
